The Loneliest Tour by Karolyn James Read Free Book Online Page A

good show. It was one thing to be
confident in your sound and stage presence. It was another to be a complete
asshole about it.
    As Colin walked along the hall, he
touched everyone, nodding, smiling, actually asking to sign autographs.
    Jett stood with his arms crossed,
watching it all unfold.
    Colin, Carson, Jack, and Stan all
moved down the hall right toward the end table, definitely going for drinks.
They ’ d be drunk in an hour
and puking by two in the morning. The young life of rockstars. Except you
needed talent to back it all up.
    “ Hey,
man, ” Colin said, patting
Jett on the shoulder. “ You
ready to play? ”
    “ Yeah. ”
    “ Tough
crowd out there. I think they ’ re
used to Portis ’ style, you
know? That fancy, corporate laid back shit. They don ’ t get the sound. ”
    “ It
happens, ” Jett said. “ You live and move on. ”
    “ Good
advice. ”
    “ Shit,
this is wild, ” Jack said. “ Standing with the guitarists
from Willow freaking Son. It ’ s
wild. Wild. So wild. ”
    Jett raised an eyebrow. Ryker then
asked, “ Hey, is it wild? ”
    “ What
the fuck? ” Jack asked.
    “ Take
it easy, ” Jett said.
    “ No,
fuck you, man. ”
    “ Fuck
him? ” Ryker asked. He
grabbed Jack by the shirt. “ Fuck
him? ”
    As expected, thanks to technology
and social media, there were a dozen cell phones out and capturing the scene.
    “ Bro, ” Jett said as he grabbed Ryker ’ s arm. “ Not worth it. We have to tour with them. It ’ s all good. ”
    “ It ’ s all good, ” Ryker said. He let Jack go. “ Why don ’ t you and the gals grab a drink and watch a real
band play? ”
    “ Fucking
assholes, ” Colin said. “ Watch your backs. ”
    Crutch Fail walked the rest of the
hall.
    Jett punched Ryker in the arm. “ You can ’ t do that shit. You know how it is with us right
now, man. Shit. ”
    “ They ’ re assholes. ”
    “ Of
course they are. We were too when we were a young band. ”
    “ We
were talented. ”
    “ Granted,
but still, take it easy. Let time …”
    Jett ’ s
eyes were no longer on Ryker. He watched as the dancers appeared. One, two,
three … and Masie.
    “ What
the hell are you counting for? ” Ryker asked.
    “ Nobody, ” Jett said. “ I mean, uh, nothing. Just get
ready, Ryker. Dammit. No fights. ”
    Jett pushed away from Ryker and
charged down the hall. One of the guitar techs tried asking Jett something and
he did a quick spin like a football player dodging a tackle. Jett walked
backwards a few steps and yelled out, “ Just
go with your gut. I don ’ t
give a damn what guitar I play as long as it has six strings! ”
    Jett then turned and kept going. At
the end of the hall there was a stairwell. He kicked the door open and charged
down. He made it to the first landing and then put on the brakes. Masie stood
at the top of the landing with her cell in her hand. Jett almost damn tackled
her.
    She saw him and screamed, dropping
her phone.
    It landed smack on the
landing, luckily not going down the steps.
    “ Holy
hell, sorry, ” Jett said. “ I, uh, just wanted to see you. ”
    “ See
me? Why? ”
    Jett bent and grabbed the phone. It
had a picture of Masie on the stage, after the show, smiling big. Sweat beads
on her forehead, her hair messy, but that damn smile so cute and pretty.
    “ Sending
pics? ” Jett asked.
    “ That ’ s none of your business, ” Masie said and grabbed the
phone.
    “ I
bet your boyfriend likes that. ”
    Masie snorted. “ Boyfriend. Right. ”
    “ Where
are you headed now? ”
    “ Downstairs.
That ’ s where the dancers go
to get changed. ”
    “ Then? ”
    “ I
guess out in the crowd. Or go home. Whatever works. ”
    “ No,
don ’ t do that. Come with
me. We ’ ll go upstairs. Get
a drink and relax. Enjoy the show. ”
    “ I ’ m kind of a mess. ”
    Jett reached out and touched a
piece of Masie ’ s hair - just
like the first night they met - and he fixed it. “ There. Now you look perfect. ”
    Masie